living the Tiki lifestyle with Ray Wyland

Every home Tiki bar is built the same way: one piece at a time. It may start with the bar itself, a piece of furniture, a Tiki, a wall hanging, or even a Tiki mug itself that creates the spark for someone to start to build a home Tiki bar. Everything you see in a home Tiki bar has a story behind it and adds to the history of the bar. The Monkey Hut, Heather Gregg and Craig Hermann’s home Tiki bar in Portland, OR, has its own history that starts back in the ’90s in Petaluma, CA.

The third and final day of Tiki Kon 2016 was what everyone had been waiting for! The last two days had been filled with awesome room parties, symposiums, and entertainment, but today we got to visit some home Tiki bars in Portland, OR!

It has been a rainy year so far up in the Pacific Northwest. It’s no joke: it rains a lot, but usually things start to get nicer by May and the weather is perfect until October. Not this year. It’s already well into July and I’m driving through one rainstorm after another on my three-hour trek down from Seattle to Portland for Tiki Kon 2016. The Tiki lifestyle is all about escapism. I’m looking forward to a weekend of Tiki drinks and entertainment, room parties, and getting to see some home Tiki bars along the way. I’ll spoil the ending: Tiki Kon 2016 was a blast and for three days I forgot that it was the middle of July and I’m still wearing a raincoat!

For our birthdays, my friends and I take each other out for dinner. We have been doing this for many years. I personally don’t need anything and having a night out with friends is the best gift ever. Instead of taking me out to dinner this year, my friends Kim and Gregg decided to take me out for Tiki drinks. That was fine with me!

When it comes to a full Tiki experience, there are three factors: décor, music, and drinks. These three factors are what I look for when I visit a Tiki bar. The décor and music are major factors that can make a Tiki bar great, but the most important thing for me is the cocktails. But what happens if the cocktails were taken out of the equation? Would a Tiki experience be the same without a Mai Tai in my hand? This is something I never really thought about until I talked to Daren Ford…

Cave Of Kungaloosh owner Daren

Daren has turned his home and backyard into a Tiki getaway. His place is called the Cave Of The Kungaloosh and it’s truly amazing. But there is one thing that’s different with Daren: he doesn’t drink alcohol. Can someone enjoy the Tiki lifestyle without drinking? Let’s find out…

Thinkgeek.com may have come with one of the coolest ideas ever. They combined two of my favorite things: Star Wars and Tiki! There are six different mugs. There is a mug for Darth Vader, Boba Fett, Yoda, R2-D2, Chewbacca, and a Stormtropper.

Jason Alexander of Tacoma Cabana ordered a collection of Star Wars mugs of his own. Once Jason had the mugs in hand, he started to think about what to do with them and came up with a great idea: create Star Wars-themed Tiki drinks!

I have a guilty pleasure: I love before and after photos! I love seeing people lose weight and get in shape. I love seeing a vintage car get restored or a home get remodeled. What’s better than all of these is seeing before and after photos of a home Tiki bar. Debba Debba and Paul actually have a picture of their basement before it was converted into the Green Bamboo Lounge.

There are key people that have made the Tiki community what it is today and what it’s going to be in the future. Right now there are three main Tiki events that happen each year. One of those events is Tiki Kon and Greg Clapp is the man who puts it all together.

Tiki Kon takes place in Portland, OR, and has been going on for fourteen years. It’s a weekend of live music and entertainment. Tiki Kon also includes Tiki symposiums, Tiki bartending competitions, and an open market for artists and vendors to sell their Tiki wares. The main event of Tiki Kon is a home Tiki bar crawl where five or so bars are visited.

I was in Portland and I had a chance to meet Greg in person and ask him a few questions…